Constitution amendment not dead – N’ Assembly

By Johnbosco Agbakwuru
ABUJA—The National Assembly is to approach the Supreme Court to seek a quick discharge of the ruling barring it from further work on the constitution amendment Vanguard has learnt.

The move Vanguard learnt follows concerns in the National Assembly that President Goodluck Jonathan has failed to produce the signature page of the Fourth Alteration Act that was passed on to him for assent.

A top official of the National Assembly told Vanguard that with the move to get the apex court to vacate the ruling, the constitution review process could be brought to a close before the end of the tenure of the 7th National Assembly.

The principal officer who spoke in confidence said that the National Assembly believed that the apex court does not have all the facts of the matter and that the position of the Supreme Court on the matter is not a judgement, “but just a position and understandably so.”

According to him, the National Assembly, wanted to explain to the apex court that it complied fully with Sections 8 and 9 of the Constitution by getting four-fifths of both chambers and two-thirds of the State Houses of Assembly in the process of passing the alterations.

He said, “I don’t think that the alterations are dead as being insinuated in some quarters. It is not over until it is over. The Seventh National Assembly has not expired.

“We need to approach the Supreme Court to hear our position because the National Assembly has to present its own position to the Supreme Court. The inter face will be formal. The Supreme Court has to be fully briefed on the matter.”

He also confirmed that President Goodluck Jonathan did not return the signature page of the constitution alterations forwarded to him as requested by the National Assembly.

According to him, the Senate requested the return of the signature page formally “but it was not returned.”

He said, “Mr. President refused to sign the alterations but he did not return the bill that was signed by the clerk of the National Assembly.”

He also said the National Assembly will not override the President’s veto on the Bill, adding that no arm of government would want to truncate the goodwill the country is enjoying locally and internationally.